Last year, the Blue Jackets led the NHL in man games lost, with 502. That figure derailed what was supposed to be a building block campaign; the year prior, Columbus posted a franchise-high 93 points en route to the first two playoff wins in club history.

While the team isn’t using health issues as an excuse for last year, it does recognize it can’t allow injuries to be so disruptive.

“We need to find better ways to maintain and not have major dips,” head coach Todd Richards said earlier this summer, per NHL.com. “We might have injuries this year, and you’ve got to find ways to stay afloat instead of sinking.”

If they do stay healthy, the Blue Jackets should be a legit playoff contender.

Brandon Saad, acquired in a summer blockbuster from Chicago, will give the team a dynamic, goalscoring power forward up front, presumably to play alongside franchise center Ryan Johansen. Behind those two are a host of capable scorers: Nick Foligno, Scott Hartnell, Boone Jenner and Brandon Dubinsky, to name a few.

On defense, the picture is murkier.

The club is holding out hope that Ryan Murray, the No. 2 overall pick in 2012, is finally over the health issues that derailed his first two NHL campaigns. The 20-year-old, who has the potential to be a top-pairing d-man, only appeared in 12 games last year, after missing 18 in his rookie campaign.

Outside of Murray, the familiar cast of characters remains: Jack Johnson, David Savard, Fedor Tyutin and Dalton Prout, most notably. The Jackets are counting on that crew to improve internally and possibly get a push from prospects like Dillon Heatherington and Michael Paliotta, the latter acquired from Chicago in the Saad deal.

In goal, there are no questions.

Sergei Bobrovsky enters as the clear-cut No.1, coming off a campaign in which he missed significant time to injury and posted below average numbers (.918 save percentage, 2.68 GAA).

The hope is that Bobrovsky will return to the form that saw him win the Vezina two years ago, and that the skaters in front of him will stay healthy. If both those things happen, Columbus will be knocking on the door of playoff contention, and not a team opponents will want to face should it get in.

Just one day after re-upping with one of their young defensemen, the Blue Jackets have retained another.

Justin Falk, acquired at the deadline in exchange for Jordan Leopold, has been signed to a one-year, two-way extension, the club announced on Friday.

“Justin is a good, young defenseman who was a solid addition to our hockey club late last season,” Columbus GM Jarmo Kekalainen said in a statement. “We are pleased that he will continue to be a part of our group on the blue line next season.”

Falk, 26, scored two points in 18 games last year while averaging 15:13 TOI per night. News of his signing comes just one day after Columbus also re-upped with another d-man — 25-year-old Cody Goloubef — on a two-year, $1.5 million extension.

The Falk deal pretty much locks in the Blue Jackets’ defense for next year, barring a trade of some sort. The club now has eight NHL defensemen under contract: Falk, Goloubef, Jack Johnson, Ryan Murray, Fedor Tyutin, David Savard, Dalton Prout and Kevin Connauton.

“Cody is a mobile, puck moving defenseman who makes good decisions on the ice and we’re excited about his future as a Blue Jacket,” said Kekalainen. “He has shown steady improvement in his game and we believe there is more room for growth in the coming years.”

Goloubef, 25, had nine points in 36 games last year while averaging 15:33 TOI per night. After spending most of the last four years shuttling between Columbus and AHL Springfield, Goloubef was set to become a UFA on July 1 after making $625,000 annually on his last deal; per the club, financial details of this new contract were not disclosed (the Dispatch reports it’s a one-way deal worth $1.5 million, a $750K annual cap hit.)

The signing gives Columbus seven defensemen under contract for next year: Goloubef, Jack Johnson, Ryan Murray, Fedor Tyutin, David Savard, Dalton Prout and Kevin Connauton. Dillon Heatherington, the club’s second-round pick (50th overall) at the 2013 NHL Entry Draft, could challenge for a spot in Columbus, but seems more likely destined for Lake Erie, the club’s new AHL affiliate.

Given all the injuries the Blue Jackets have endured this season, it’s no surprise that their GM, Jarmo Kekalainen, would like to add some insurance for next season.

And he’s looking specifically at the blue line.

“I think we need to add a little bit more depth on defense to make sure… I mean defense is a position that if you have injuries you’re going to be in a tough situation,” Kekalainen told FOX Sports Ohio recently.

“The guys that come up to play from the minors have to be NHL-ready, at least, for the amount of games that they need to play at that time. That can expose you if they’re not.

“I think with the amount of players that we have now under contract for next year, and the prospects that we have, whether that’s in Springfield, junior or college coming to the pros, we have to make sure that we have enough depth for next year. That’s something that we’ll focus on in the offseason.”

On Monday, the Jackets announced they’ve signed Aktinson to a three-year, $10.5 million contract extension, one that carries a $3.5M average annual cap hit.

Atkinson, 25, has been a solid contributor in Columbus over the last two seasons. He was a pending RFA — carrying a $1.15 million cap hit — and looked to be in line for a raise; Atkinson scored a career-high 21 goals and 40 points last year and is averaging over 17 minutes a night this season (another career-high).

In 58 games this year, Atkinson has 13 goals and 25 points. This new deal will keep him in Columbus through the 2018 season, making him a long-term guy along with the likes of David Clarkson, Scott Hartnell, Nick Foligno, Brandon Dubinsky, Fedor Tyutin and Jack Johnson.